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What I’ve Learned From Blogging

Happy Thirsty Thursday my internet friends! Is it me or is this weather completely bi-polar. One day it’s brick cold out and the next day it’s sunny and hot, I seriously can’t get an outfit right in this weather. Anyways, today I decided to ramble about a topic that I feel gets constantly brought up by the people who surround me… BLOGGING.

So let me just start by saying that I personally feel I’m in the wrong country! I really think that the United Kingdom is the place to be if you’re interested in this whole blogging experience. Not just because of the beautiful scenery but because of the kind people there. I’ve made so many great friends in that country sometimes I really wish I could just pack up and move there! *sigh, I cannot…at least not yet*

People read blogs ALL the time, the funny thing is that most people don’t actually realize it. So a little of a year and half ago I decided to do something completely out of the ordinary and create a blog. At first I had no idea what I was doing, heck I still don’t have a clue but I love doing it. Joining the blogging community has been an amazing experience for me. See, if you know me then you know that I come from a long line of critical thinkers, I’ve never before this point in my life considered myself a creative person. My whole world was black and white but creating a blog opened my eyes to a spectrum of colors I didn’t even know existed and I am so grateful to have given myself this chance because for me it truly was a leap of faith in which I’m learning how to fly.

The people who know me, my family and friends, always ask me WHAT IS BLOGGING? WHAT DO YOU DO? WHY DO YOU DO IT? WHAT DO YOU GET OUT OF IT? And honestly I get so embarrassed that people who know me actually read it and I don’t know how to reply, so after much thought here is what I’ve learned from blogging:

Blogging, to me, is a form of self expression. Some people draw, others paint… I write. I’ve always found that writing is my truest and most honest form of expression. I’ve loved writing since I can remember! I had a childhood friend whome I use to exchange letters with for years when I had to move away from our home town, which was so amazing to me. I also have notebooks and diaries filled with scribbles of stories, poems even feelings towards life events that re-surface when I read them back. I never in my wildest dreams ever saw a future in writing. Being a journalist never interested me so I put writing in the back burner until I began Viva La Nicky.

Creativity and thinking outside of the box. This is something I still struggle with at times because sometimes I get stuck in the black and white. Whenever I get mind blocked I take a break, save my work and return to it. This post was actually created Monday with intents to be published on Tuesday but here we are on Thursday. Sometimes you have to let it breath a while. There were a couple of months that I stopped blogging completely, and that was okay. I felt I was pushing myself to hard and my content was weak and pointless, so I stopped and came back when I felt I was ready.

It is never okay to copy someone else’s stuff. Blogging is a lot of work, people who don’t do it don’t know but it can get very frustrating and draining and copying is NOT COOL. It’s okay to admire someone else’s creative job and maybe do something similar with a twist but copying word for word or picture for picture isn’t very nice. I’ve had times where I’ve tried to help new bloggers begin by giving them tips, do’s and don’ts, to find that they have a post almost the same as mine. It takes time and effort to create content, take pictures, edit etc so be a cool cat and don’t copy. Oh and if for some reason you do use someone else’s picture or words always make sure to let them know and link the work back to them, that is totally acceptable and appreciated in our line of work.

Being friendly and approachable is what makes you friends and brings in readers. I’m a New Yorker so you know the whole generalization that we’re stuck up, rude and we got out bitchy resting face on 24/7. You are 100% right, I use to be like that until I met so many great souls in the blogging community. I truly is nice to be nice. Deciding to be happy and positive has changed my life. I try being nice and genuine to everyone I meet online and offline and I’ve made some pretty great friendships and partnerships.

Don’t expect free things. This is where most newbie bloggers go wrong, expecting free things… especially if you’re into beauty. I admit that receiving products for review is one of the greatest feelings as a bogger, it usually means that you have strong content, good graphics and loyal readers.

Honesty is key. This is the biggest and most important thing I’ve learned from blogging. People can usually smell a fake. Always being genuine with your readers is so important for your blogs success. Readers tend to be pretty loyal, they trust and depend on your reviews or advice so don’t be a phony and lie. This is the worst thing you can do. Your blog can be the prettiest and most decked out but if you’re reviews aren’t honest, trust me you will lose a following quick.

This was a bigger post than I intended, woops! I do hope you enjoyed this and got to know me a little better. Please let me know if you want other stuff related to blogging, I can always make a part deux! Have a great Thursday I’ll see you guys back in my next post.

Thanks a bunch! I'm thinking of making a part two to this, what do you think I should include?

Vanessa

Hello Nicky! Your post was very honest and relate-able. I think you are doing a great job so far so keep it going! It seems like you may be more geared to beauty blogging which is great. Is it possible that when you make beauty posts, you include the products used? I didn't notice it on your videos so that may be good! Any suggestions for beginner products? Especially how to match foundation! It's crazy how unhelpful the beauty experts I've encountered have been. Maybe a NY thing afterall! Thanks so much!

I will most definitely include the names of the products in the next video! Thank you for the suggestion 🙂

What type of makeup or look are you trying to go for? You can email me and we go into depth there. For foundation matching I always try it on my forhead, cheek and neck to see how well it blends, if you go ti Sephora or Ulta they usually have samplers so you can try 🙂